


Color Pulse

by Anonymous



Category: Splatoon
Genre: (and surely will be just as good a girlfriend), Agent 3 is a Good Friend, Agent 8's first Splatfest, F/F, Fluff, Pearl and Marina are mentioned but don't play an actual role in this, Pre-Relationship, Takes place during the Retro vs Modern Splatfest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-10-02
Packaged: 2019-07-23 22:06:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16167815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Eight has been invited to the Splatfest by Pearl and Marina, but finding the courage to mingle with the crowd is hard when you're still new to the surface.





	Color Pulse

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first Splatoon fic and given the characters, I'm sorry if the characterization doesn't fit your tastes! I've written them with the personalities I felt suit them (which is a mix of personal headcanons and what I saw in the fandom), so I hope you'll enjoy this little story!

Pearl and Marina had insisted that she came to the Splatfest that weekend. It hadn’t been long since she reached the surface and she still had trouble adapting to the life up there, so the prospect of being thrown in the middle of what was apparently the biggest parties in the city didn’t reassure her much. Pearl had told her it was the most efficient way to get used to the spirit of Inkopolis.

Eight really hoped she was right about that.

She wasn’t far from the square, where the Splatfest was held. She couldn’t bring herself to walk around that corner and get in the crowd though. Listening to Marina and Pearl’s voices made her feel calmer but every time she gathered enough courage to take those decisive steps, Eight felt herself deflate.

She tried to reason herself that other Inklings and Octolings (she had seen a few of them and had felt proud of her friends) couldn’t be that hard to deal with, especially in a context of festivities. But she couldn’t help the knot in her stomach.

If she had to take a guess, she’d say she probably felt ill-at-ease in a loud crowd. The deepsea metro had had moments where it was overcrowded but it had always been a special kind of quiet. The low discussions between friends and co-workers, the rumble of the metro over the rails, the background music in the wagons to give the place a friendly atmosphere. It was what she was used to, now. The Splatfest seemed to be so much _more_.

Eight sighed. At this pace, she was going to go back to the flat Pearl and Marina had helped her move in a few days ago. It would probably be for the best, she thought. If she couldn’t bring herself to go to the square, what would happen if she did get there?

“Nice shirt.”

Eight jumped and turned around quickly, facing the voice that had startled her. She let out a sigh of relief when she realized it was Agent 3. She waved at her, an awkward smile on her face. Three waved back and came in closer, wearing a sheepish smile of her own.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Eight shook her head, letting her know it was okay. “First Splatfest, right? I guess it can be scary if you’re not used to that kind of thing, huh.”

Eight crossed her arms and looked down, a little ashamed. Three pat her shoulder and assured her it was fine. Eight thanked her with a small smile.

“You’re in team Modern?”

Eight nodded, looking down at her shirt. Pearl and Marina had been trying to get her into their teams but Eight had to admit she preferred new technologies and the likes. Pearl had whined about it for a while before eventually defying her solemnly in turf war later on. Marina had hugged her for a good ten minutes, telling her how much she was destined to win since she was in her team and had given her her team shirt.

“Guess we’ll be facing off then, if you choose to participate.” At Eight’s curious face, Three explained how Splatfest worked in deeper details. “Though some of what I just said might be inaccurate; they recently changed the rules and I might have mixed things up, sorry.”

Eight laughed softly. She thanked Three with a nod of her head and looked back in the direction of the square. Hearing Three’s explanation made her feel excited about the Splatfest and turf wars but she was still anxious.

Three put a warm hand on her shoulder. Eight glanced at her but Three was looking in the direction of the square.

“You won’t be alone, you know? I can go and stay with you if you’d like. You don’t even have to go play with the others if you’d rather just watch Off the Hook singing. If you really don’t feel good once you’re there, you’re also free to go as you wish.” Three finally looked at Eight again.

Eight felt her hearts do something weird, and though she wasn’t sure if she should be worried, she found that at that moment she didn’t really care. Three’s eyes were glowing with the lights coming from afar, a sprinkling of colors reflected in her eyes. She had a soft look on her face as well and Eight felt… safe? Warm. That was definitely a much better feeling than the anxious knot she had had in her stomach all evening so far.

Three looked away suddenly, dropping her hand from Eight’s shoulder. Eight was worried she might have done something bad somehow before she noticed the color on Three’s cheeks. A deep pink.

Eight felt a smile grow on her face, her own cheeks turning pink as well. She only hesitated a second before reaching for Three’s hand. It startled Three but looking at her smile, the Inkling relaxed and grinned back at her.

Three made Eight feel like nothing was as scary as it seemed. The Splatfest, the crowd… if Three was with her, then she would definitely have a good time.

(And if Pearl and Marina teased her and Three after the Splatfest, well, that was Three's problem because Eight had no trouble admitting she liked the Inkling.)


End file.
